SPLASH...
Under the cover of night, the Eight-legged Sky Horse had left the Royal Capital of Kingston and imdiately leaped into the sea, tearing through the waves at a thunderous pace.
However, the siblings didn't imdiately set off for the First Circulation Zone southward; instead, they first took a detour northward to the Sorenburg Principality, where they had grown up together.
This place belonged to the northern border of the Kingdom of Hightins and the entire Strait Islands.
Catherine's initial title, "Flower of the North," had originated from here.
Elizabeth Woodville was the first beauty of the archipelago, and Catherine was the first of the Northern Territory. Now, their beauties were hard to distinguish.
Looking down from the sky, the Gaelt Highlands were covered with endless deciduous forests and rolling hills that were a patchwork of low green grass and moss.
Due to the high latitude, during sumr the sun would linger long at the monts of sunrise and sunset, boasting the most beautiful dawn and dusk on the continent.
In winter, the daylight hours were fleeting, rely bridging dawn and dusk, refusing to linger despite all pleas, yet the nights were always clear and dazzling.
Many [Adventurers] and [Hunters] of the Wilderness Sequence have praised the Northern Territory as the most beautiful scenery on the Old Continent, and over the long course of history, it has given birth to countless legends and stories.
Not far from the southern side of Sorenburg, which is nestled against the mountains, stands the famous Wonders of Civilization - Northern Border Wall.
In the Mythological Era, it was the northern border wall of the Silver Empire, ant to defend against the Barbarians, who are the ancestors of the main ethnic groups of today's continental nations.
In the end, it was barbarism that conquered civilization, subsequently inheriting it, and even priding themselves as the legitimate successors of the empire.
The [Northern Great Wall] has thus beco a complete relic, not being used for many years.
It's a pity that this pleasant and magical place now benefits that ugly [Devil Duke] Richard York.
WHOOSH!
A brilliant rainbow light ford a bridge in the sky above the Sorenburg Principality, from which faint CLIPPITY-CLOP sounds of horses' hooves emanated.
Then the rainbow bridge shattered, and two figures on horseback—completely invisible to mortals—appeared in the sky, stepping on a strand of breeze as light as air.
With the assistance of the Eight-legged Sky Horse's "Rainbow Bridge," it took only a few breaths for the siblings to cross the majority of the Kingdom of Hightins.
Breathing in the fresh air unique to their holand, Byron and Catherine both felt a surge of relief. No matter how rich foreign lands are or how large their territories, nothing compares to one's own holand. It's just that the port city of Sorenburg seems to have beco much more desolate than last year.
In the clear moonlight of early August, there were not many sailboats docked in the harbor, a noticeable difference from when the siblings reunited here at the end of last year.
But they quickly understood the reason for this.
To this day, the Northern Sea Leviathan Kraken, a Sixth-Order Demigod, was still roaming the entirety of the North Sea,
following the Pied Piper's Shepherd Flute's rules for killing, punishing all "traitors."
Having persisted for nearly a year, it had of course greatly impacted comrcial shipping.
The Kingdom's Navy was even more affected, particularly its Strait Fleet. Besides the First Fleet, which had already been annihilated at Iron Anchor Bay, the other holand fleets also suffered considerable losses over the course of the year.
The second, third, and fourth were the main fleets; the fifth and sixth were Security Fleets; The Seventh Fleet was the colonial fleet, which was now in Byron's hands.
Other than The Seventh Fleet, which was far overseas, the remaining fleets all experienced continuous bleeding, with losses in personnel and military equipnt.
This was one reason both Edward IV and the Kingmaker Warwick had independently decided to outsource military manufacturing. Additionally, they were influenced by the "Emperor's New Clothes."
This was also a helpless reality.
The weapon factories and shipyards within the Kingdom of Hightins simply couldn't provide large-scale military supplies for their civil war.
Byron nodded in sudden understanding. The First-Class Holy Relic "Nation-Destroying Nail" sets off a chain of events. Since I cast out that nail last year, starting with the flooding of the gunports which led to the destruction of the First Fleet, it still profoundly affects the country to this day, progressively pushing it into the Abyss.
As for Byron himself, although he was a veteran "Heartfelt Trouble" and a master of backstabbing, he didn't need to worry about being attacked by the Kraken.
Setting aside the fact that he had signed three "Pacts with the Gods"—his soul effectively sold to three parties—he never had any good intentions from the start. How could he be bound by faith when he was set on reclaiming everything he'd lost from the traitors?
The battle between the Royalist Party and the Earl's Party won't end anyti soon. To avoid being affected in the future, we should handle our proper business while they are both desperate.
Byron pulled on the reins, not heading for the castle in the Principality but steering the Eight-legged Sky Horse towards an uninhabited islet to the far north of the port city.
At the northeastern corner of the islet, facing the end of the "Third Ring Current Zone," stood a towering cliff.
Atop the cliff was a tomb of modest scale but made with exquisite materials and an elegant design.
The white marble tombstone bore a single lonely na—Heather Lancaster.
This was the final resting place of Byron's mother.
On the base of the tombstone was an epitaph:
"Byron, don't sneak my teddy bear cookies. Please show so respect for the offerings. Thank you."
The epitaph alone conjured an image of a mischievous, cute, and sowhat gluttonous young girl, naturally bringing a knowing smile to one's face.
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